This goes to the heart of the matter

A story in today’s Australian, but not prominently displayed, goes to the heart of the current crisis in remote communities: ‘Crisis’ in welfare of children.

FORMER Australian of the Year Fiona Stanley has told an international forum that the poor health and welfare of Aboriginal children represents a “domestic humanitarian crisis”.

… Professor Stanley told The Australian that the military intervention in Northern Territory communities and a proposal for a similar move in Western Australia arose from a substantial and growing gap between sections of Australia’s population.

“That’s exactly what we’re seeing: the extreme end of inequality in opportunity, education, welfare and crime,” Professor Stanley said.

She called for trained Aboriginal health workers to be mobilised to work in troubled communities as part of the healing process.

“There are a huge number of Aboriginal people with health training but they have no career path,” she said.

“They deliver a service that’s trusted and they are often swamped because they are so successful. But often the plug is pulled because they are employed in pilot programs.”

While strongly endorsing moves to protect children from abuse, she warned against repeating past policies that separated Aboriginal children from their families.

“The removal of children in the Stolen Generation explains almost everything about the problems we’re seeing today,” she said.

“We need to go back to the Stolen Generation report and implement every aspect of its recommendations.”

The child health survey, which collected information from 2000 families and interviewed 11,500 family members, found 41 per cent of indigenous children were living in households that had experienced the forced separation of at least one parent, primary carer or grandparent.

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